Palestinian Territories
(2005)
Israel occupied the West Bank, Gaza
Strip, Golan Heights, and East Jerusalem during the
1967 War. Israel and the Palestinian Authority (PA)
now administer the West Bank and Gaza Strip to varying
extents. The PA does not have a constitution; however,
the Basic Law provides for freedom of religion, and
the PA generally respects this right in practice. The
Basic Law names Islam as the official religion but also
calls for "respect and sanctity" for other
religions.
There was no change in the status
of the PA's respect for religious freedom during the
reporting period. President Mahmud Abbas took steps
to eliminate religious incitement, although incidents
of such incitement still occurred. In previous years,
there were credible reports that PA security forces
and judicial officials colluded with criminal elements
to extort property illegally from Christian landowners
in the Bethlehem area. While there have not been recent
reports of Christians being targeted for extortion or
abuse, the PA has not taken action to investigate past
injustices allegedly perpetrated by PA officials.
Israel exercises varying degrees of
legal control in the occupied territories. Israel has
no constitution; however, Israeli law provides for freedom
of worship, and the Israeli Government generally respects
this right in practice in the occupied territories.
There was no change in the status
of the Israeli Government's respect for religious freedom
in the occupied territories during the reporting period.
Israel's strict closure policies frequently restricted
the ability of Palestinians to reach places of worship
and practice their religions. The construction of aseparationbarrier
by the Government of Israel, particularly in and around
East Jerusalem, also severely limited access to mosques,
churches, and other holy sites, and seriously impeded
the work of religious organizations that provide education,
healthcare, and other humanitarian relief and social
services to Palestinians. Such impediments were not
exclusive to religious believers or to religious organizations,
and at times the Israeli Government made efforts to
lessen the impact on religious communities. The Israeli
Government confiscated land (usually offering limited
compensation, which churches do not accept) belonging
to several religious institutions to build its separation
barrier between East Jerusalem and the West Bank.
There generally are amicable relations
between Christians and Muslims, although tensions exist.
Strong societal attitudes are a barrier to conversions
from Islam. Relations between Jews and non-Jews, as
well as among the different branches of Judaism, sometimes
are strained. Societal tensions between Jews and non-Jews
exist primarily as a result of the Palestinian-Israeli
conflict; such tensions remained high during the reporting
period. The violence that has occurred since the outbreak
of the Intifada in October 2000 has significantly curtailed
religious practice in many areas of the occupied territories.
This violence included severe damage to places of worship
and religious shrines in the occupied territories.
The U.S. Government discusses religious
freedom issues with the PA and the Israeli Government
as part of its overall policy to promote human rights.
Section I. Religious Demography
The occupied territories are composed
of the Gaza Strip, the Golan Heights, the West Bank,
and East Jerusalem. The Gaza Strip covers an area of
143 square miles, and its population is approximately
1.3 million persons, not including approximately 7,800
Israeli settlers. The West Bank (excluding East Jerusalem)
covers an area of 2,238 square miles, and its population
is approximately 2.4 million persons, not including
approximately 220,000 Israeli settlers. East Jerusalem
covers an area of 27 square miles, and its population
is approximately 400,000 persons, including approximately
180,000 Israeli settlers. The Golan Heights covers an
area of approximately 810 square miles, and its total
population is approximately 20,000.
Approximately 98 percent of Palestinian
residents of the occupied territories are Sunni Muslims.
According to a 1997 Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics
estimate, approximately 39,560 Palestinian Christians
live in the occupied territories. However, according
to the sum of estimates provided by individual Christian
denominations (which seem significantly overstated),
the total number of Christians is approximately 200,000.
A majority of Christians are Greek Orthodox (approximately
120,000), and there also are a significant number of
Roman Catholics and Greek Catholics (approximately 50,000
together), Protestants, Syrian Orthodox, Armenians,
Copts, Maronites, and Ethiopian Orthodox. In general
Christians are concentrated in the areas of Jerusalem,
Ramallah, and Bethlehem. According to municipal officials
in Bethlehem, since 2002 approximately 2800 Christians
from the Bethlehem area have left the occupied territories
for other countries. According to Christian leaders,
most of the Christians left their homesnot due to religious
discrimination, but for economic and security reasons
associated with the violence of the Second Intifada,
the restrictions resulting from Israeli closure policies
and the construction of the Israeli separation barrier,
and the negative impact of both on the local economy.
There is also a community of approximately 400 Samaritans
(an ancient offshoot of Judaism) located on Mount Gerazim
near Nablus in the West Bank.
Adherents of several denominations
of evangelical Christians as well as members of Jehovah's
Witnesses operate in the West Bank. Foreign missionaries
operate in the occupied territories, including a small
number of evangelical Christian pastors who seek to
convert Muslims to Christianity. While they maintain
a generally low profile, the PA is aware of their activities
and generally does not restrict them.
Section II. Status of Religious Freedom
Legal/Policy Framework
The Palestinian Authority does not
have a constitution; however, the Basic Law provides
for religious freedom, and the PA generally respects
this right in practice. The Basic Law states that "Islam
is the official religion in Palestine," and that
"respect and sanctity of all other heavenly religions
(i.e., Judaism and Christianity) shall be maintained."
In 2002 the Basic Law was approved by the Palestinian
Legislative Council (PLC) and signed by then-PA Chairman
Yasir Arafat. The March 2003 draft constitution states
that "Islam is the official religion of the State,"
and "Christianity and all other monotheistic religions
shall be equally revered and respected." It is
unclear whether the injunction to "respect"
other religions will translate into an effective legal
protection of religious freedom. The Basic Law states
that the principles of Shari'a (Islamic law) are "the
main source of legislation," while the draft constitution
states that Shari'a is "a major source of legislation."
Churches in Jerusalem, the West Bank,
and Gaza operate under one of three general categories:
churches recognized by the status quo agreements reached
under Ottoman rule in the late 19th century, Protestant
and evangelical churches established between the late
19th century and 1967, which, although they exist and
operate, are not recognized officially by the PA, and
a small number of churches that became active within
the last decade, and whose legal status is more tenuous.
The first group of churches is governed
by 19th century status quo agreements reached with Ottoman
authorities, which the PA respects, and which specifically
established the presence and rights of the Greek Orthodox,
Roman Catholic, Armenian Orthodox, Assyrian, Syrian
Orthodox, Greek Catholic, Coptic, and Ethiopian Orthodox
churches. The Episcopal and Lutheran churches were added
later to this list. The PA immediately upon its establishment
recognized these churches and their rights. Like Shari'a
courts under Islam, these religious groups are permitted
to have ecclesiastical courts whose rulings are considered
legally binding on personal status issues and some land
issues. Civil courts do not adjudicate on such matters.
According to the PA, no other churches
have applied for official recognition; however, churches
in the second category, which includes the Assembly
of God, Nazarene Church, and some Baptist churches,
have unwritten understandings with the PA based on the
principles of the status quo agreements. They are permitted
to operate freely and are able to perform certain personal
status legal functions, such as issuing marriage certificates.
The third group of churches consists
of a small number of proselytizing churches, including
Jehovah's Witnesses and some evangelical Christian groups.
These groups have encountered opposition in their efforts
to obtain recognition, both from Muslims who oppose
their proselytizing, and from Christians who fear that
the new arrivals may disrupt the status quo. However,
these churches generally operate unhindered by the PA.
In practice the PA requires Palestinians
to declare religious affiliation on identification papers.
All personal status legal matters must be handled in
either Islamic or Christian ecclesiastical courts if
such courts exist for the individual's denomination.
All legally recognized individual sects are empowered
to adjudicate personal status matters, and in practice
most do so. Neither the PA nor the Government of Israel
currently has a civil marriage law. Legally, members
of one religious group mutually may agree to submit
a personal status dispute to a different Christian denomination
to adjudicate, but in practice this does not occur.
Churches that are not officially recognized by the PA
or the Government of Israel must obtain special permission
to perform marriages or adjudicate personal status issues;
however, in practice non-recognized churches advise
their members to marry (or divorce) abroad.
Since Islam is the official religion
of the PA, Islamic institutions and places of worship
receive preferential treatment. The PA has a Ministry
of Waqf and Religious Affairs, which pays for the construction
and maintenance of mosques and the salaries of many
Palestinian imams. The Ministry also provides limited
financial support to some Christian clergymen and Christian
charitable organizations. The PA does not provide financial
support to any Jewish institutions or holy sites in
the occupied territories.
The PA requires that religion be taught
in PA schools, with separate courses for Muslim and
Christian students. A compulsory curriculum requires
the study of Christianity for Christian students and
Islam for Muslim students in grades one through six.
While the PA has taken several steps to eliminate incitement
in textbooks and teaching, Israeli NGO analysts at Palestinian
Media Watch report that textbooks still de-legitimize
Israel’s historical connection to the land, and
that many teachers still use inflammatory anti-Israel
rhetoric in the classroom.
The PA does not officially sponsor
interfaith dialogue; however, it sends representatives
to meetings on improving interreligious relations and
attempts to foster goodwill among Muslim and Christian
religious leaders. The PA makes an effort to maintain
good relations with the Christian community; however,
the PA has not taken sufficient action to remedy past
harassment and intimidation of Christian residents of
Bethlehem by the city's Muslim majority. In previous
years, PA officials appear to have been complicit in
property extortion of Palestinian Christian residents.
PA President Abbas has informal advisors on Christian
affairs. Six seats in the 88-member Palestinian Legislative
Council (PLC) are reserved for Christians and one seat
is reserved for Samaritans; there are no seats reserved
for members of any other faith. The PA observes several
religious holidays, including Eid al-Fitr, Eid al-Adha,
Zikra al-Hijra al-Nabawiya, Christmas, and the Birth
of the Prophet. Christians also may observe the Easter
holiday.
Israel has no constitution; however,
Israeli law provides for freedom of worship, and the
Israeli Government generally respects this right in
practice in the occupied territories. Israel exercises
varying degrees of legal control in the occupied territories.
The international community considers Israel's authority
in the occupied territories to be subject to the 1907
Hague Regulations and the 1949 Geneva Convention relating
to the Protection of Civilians in Time of War. The Israeli
Government considers the Hague Regulations applicable
and maintains that it largely observed the Geneva Convention's
humanitarian provisions. The Israeli Government applies
Israeli law to East Jerusalem and the Golan Heights,
areas that it annexed after 1967.
The Israeli Government gives preferential
treatment to Jewish residents of the occupied territories,
including East Jerusalem, when granting permits for
home building and civic services. For example, Palestinian
residents of Jerusalem pay the same taxes as Jewish
residents, but Palestinian residents receive significantly
fewer municipal services than Jewish residents. Many
of the national and municipal policies enacted in Jerusalem
are designed to limit or diminish the non-Jewish population
of Jerusalem. These are official policies that every
Jerusalem municipal government has acknowledged and
followed since 1967, and that Israeli ministers including
current Israeli Interior Minister Ophir Pines-Paz have
at times openly admitted. According to Palestinian and
Israeli human rights organizations, the Israeli Government
uses a combination of zoning restrictions on building
for Palestinians, confiscation of Palestinian lands,
and demolition of Palestinian homes to "contain"
non-Jewish neighborhoods.
Restrictions on Religious Freedom
The Haram al-Sharif ("Noble Sanctuary,"
known to Jews as the Temple Mount), containing the Dome
of the Rock and the al-Aqsa Mosque, has been, with all
of East Jerusalem, under Israeli security control since
1967, when Israel captured the city (East Jerusalem
was formally annexed in 1980, and thus Israel applies
its laws to East Jerusalem). The Haram al-Sharif is
administered, however, by the Islamic Waqf, the PA-affiliated
but Jordanian-funded Muslim religious trust for East
Jerusalem, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. The Israeli
police control the compound’s entrances, and have
the ability to limit access to the compound. The Waqf
can object to entrance of particular persons, such as
non-Muslim religious radicals, or to prohibited activities,
such as prayer by non-Muslims or disrespectful clothing
or behavior, but lacks authority to remove anyone from
the site, and thus must rely on Israeli police to enforce
site regulations. In practice, Waqf officials say that
police often allow religious radicals (such as Jews
seeking to rebuild the Temple on the site and to remove
the mosques) and immodestly dressed persons to enter
and often are not responsive to enforcing the site’s
rules.
While non-Muslims (except guests of
the Waqf) were not allowed to enter the Haram al-Sharif
from September 28, 2000 (the date of then-candidate
for Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s riot-inducing
ascent to the Haram) until August 2003, non-Muslims
can now visit the site during designated visiting hours.
The Israeli Government, as a matter of stated policy,
has prevented non-Muslims from worshipping at the Haram
al-Sharif since 1967. Israeli police consistently have
declined to allow obvious prayer on public safety grounds
and publicly have indicated that this policy has not
changed in light of the renewed visits of non-Muslims
to the compound or the court ruling on the issue. Waqf
officials contend that the Israeli police, in contravention
of their stated policy and the religious status quo,
have allowed members of radical Jewish groups to enter
and to worship at the site. Spokesmen for these groups
have confirmed successful attempts to pray inside the
compound in interviews with the Israeli media. The Waqf
interprets police actions as part of an Israeli policy
to incrementally reduce Waqf authority over the site
and to give non-Muslims rights of worship in parts of
the compound.
Since October 2000, the Government
of Israel, citing security concerns, has prevented most
Palestinians from the West Bank and Gaza from reaching
the Haram al-Sharif, the third holiest shrine in Islam,
by prohibiting their entry into Jerusalem. Restrictions
are often placed on entry into the Haram al-Sharif even
for Palestinian residents of Jerusalem, such as a frequently-implemented
restriction on males under the age of 45.
There are also disputes between the
Muslim administrators of the Haram al-Sharif and Israeli
authorities regarding Israeli restrictions on Waqf attempts
to carry out repairs and physical improvements on the
compound and its mosques. Palestinian workers under
direction of Jordanian engineers are currently working
on restoring tiles on the Dome of the Rock and Ottoman-era
stones on the southern and eastern walls of the compound.
Israeli authorities have prevented the Waqf from conducting
several improvement projects or removing debris from
the site, alleging that the Waqf is attempting to alter
the nature of the site or to discard antiquities of
Jewish origin.
Personal status law for Palestinians
is based on religious law. For Muslim Palestinians,
personal status law is derived from Shari'a, and various
ecclesiastical courts rule on personal status issues
for Christians. A 1995 PA presidential decree stipulated
that all laws in effect before the advent of the PA
would continue in force until the PA enacted new laws
or amended the old ones. Therefore, in the West Bank,
which was formerly under Jordanian rule, the Shari'a-based
Jordanian Status Law of 1976 governs women’s status
issues. Under the law, which includes inheritance and
marriage laws, women inherit less than male members
of the family. The marriage law allows men to take more
than one wife, although few do so. Prior to marriage,
a woman and man may stipulate terms in the marriage
contract that govern financial and child custody matters
in the event of divorce. Reportedly, few women utilize
this section of the law. Personal status law in Gaza
is based on Shari'a-centered law as interpreted in Egypt;
however, similar versions of the attendant restrictions
on women described above apply as well.
Due to the increased violence and
security concerns related to the Intifada, the Israeli
Government has imposed a broad range of strict closures
and curfews in the occupied territories since October
2000. These restrictions largely continued during the
reporting period and resulted in significantly impeded
freedom of access to places of worship for Muslims and
Christians.
In 2002, the Government of Israel,
citing security concerns, began constructing a barrier
in the occupied territories to separate most of the
West Bank from Israel, East Jerusalem, and Israeli settlement
blocks. Construction of the barrier has involved confiscation
of property owned by non-Jews, displacement of Christian
and Muslim residents, and tightening of restrictions
on freedom of access to places of worship for non-Jewish
communities. The Government of Israel asserts that it
has mechanisms to compensate landowners for all takings,
but the Consulate General has received several reports
of land being taken along the barrier’s route
without compensation under the Absentee Property Statute
or military orders.
Construction of the separation barrier
continued in and around East Jerusalem during the reporting
period, restricting access by Arab Muslims and Christians,
including Israeli Arabs as well as Palestinians who
possess Jerusalem ID cards, to holy sites in Jerusalem
and in the West Bank. The barrier also negatively affected
access to schools, healthcare providers, and other humanitarian
services, although in some cases, the Government made
efforts to lessen the impact on religious institutions.
The separation barrier has made it
difficult for Bethlehem-area Christians to reach the
Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem, and it makes
visits to Christian sites in Bethany and in Bethlehem
difficult for Palestinian Christians who live on the
Israeli side of the barrier, further fragmenting and
dividing this small minority community. Foreign pilgrims
sometimes also experience difficulty in obtaining access
to Christian holy sites in the West Bank. The barrier
and its checkpoints also impede the movement of clergy
between Jerusalem and West Bank churches and monasteries,
as well as the movement of congregations between their
homes and places of worship.
In February 2003, the Government of
Israel issued confiscation orders for land in Bethlehem
to build a barrier and military positions around Rachel's
Tomb (a shrine holy to Jews, Christians, and Muslims).
This barrier would leave the shrine on the "Israeli"
side of the separation barrier. By the end of 2004,
the Government of Israel had walled off and fortified
the Rachel’s Tomb area, and often restricted access
to the site, only allowing Jewish visitors regular,
unimpeded access and requiring prior coordination by
other worshippers. In previous years, Jewish tourists
visiting the shrine occasionally had been harassed by
Palestinians, but Israel’s closure of the area
and associated land expropriations impede Muslim/Christian
access to the site. Israeli settlers have obtained ownership
of some of the land and properties around the tomb through
a disputed land deal.
In 2003, the Government of Israel
confiscated land from the Baron Deir monastery in Bethlehem,
which belongs to the Armenian Patriarchate, for construction
of an Israel Defense Forces (IDF) patrol road in the
area. Negotiations between the Patriarchate and the
Government of Israel reduced the amount of land confiscated.
The Armenian Patriarchate also reports
that the IDF caused significant damage to the property
during IDF incursions into Bethlehem in 2002. The parties
have not reached agreement on compensation for this
damage.
Since 2003, the Israeli Government
has confiscated land (with some compensation generally
offered but refused) belonging to three Catholic institutions
in Bethany for construction of the separation barrier:
the Camboni Sisters Convent, the Passionist Monastery,
and the Sisters of Charity Convent and school.Construction
ofthe barrierin this area, which was largely completed
during the reporting period, involved confiscation of
a significant portion of each church property. In the
village of Bethpage on the Mount of Olives, the Israeli
Government built an 8-meter-high concrete separation
barrier that crosses into the property of several Christian
institutions. The barrier in Bethpage blocks the annual
Orthodox Palm Sunday procession from Lazarus’
Tomb in Bethany to the Old City of Jerusalem, but Israel
has constructed a special gate to allow foreign pilgrims
and Christians living on the Israeli side of the barrier
to participate in the procession.
Israeli closure policies, imposed according
to the Israeli Government due to security concerns,
prevented tens of thousands of Palestinians from reaching
places of worship in Jerusalem and the West Bank, including
during religious holidays such as Ramadan, Christmas,
and Easter. There have been several violent clashes
between Israeli police and Muslim worshippers on the
Haram al-Sharif, which Waqf officials allege have been
due to the large police contingent kept on the site.
On a few occasions, Muslim worshippers have thrown stones
at police and police have fired tear gas and stun grenades
at worshippers. Muslim worshippers also have held demonstrations
at the site to protest reported Jewish extremist plans
to damage the mosques or create a Jewish worship area
at the site. Israeli security officials and police have
generally been proactive and effective in dealing with
such threats. In previous reporting periods there were
some incidents of Muslims throwing rocks toward Jewish
worshippers on the Western Wall plaza, but there have
not been any recent incidents of rocks thrown near the
Western Wall.
The Israeli Government's closure policy
prevented several Palestinian religious leaders, both
Muslim and Christian, from reaching their congregations.
In previous years, several clergymen reported that they
were subject to harassment at checkpoints; however,
during the reporting period there were no reports of
serious harassment of clergy.
During the reporting period, Palestinian
violence against Israeli settlers prevented some Israelis
from reaching Jewish holy sites in the occupied territories,
such as Joseph’s Tomb near Nablus and the Tomb
of the Patriarchs in Hebron. Since early 2001, following
the outbreak of the Intifada, the Israeli Government
has prohibited Israeli citizens in unofficial capacities
from traveling to the parts of the West Bank under the
civil and security control of the PA. This restriction
prevented Israeli Arabs from visiting Muslim and Christian
holy sites in the West Bank, and it prevented Jewish
Israelis from visiting other sites, including an ancient
synagogue in Jericho. There are now joint PA-Israeli
plans, however, to resume Jewish visits to the Jericho
synagogue.
Settler violence against Palestinians
prevented some Palestinians from reaching holy sites
in the occupied territories. Settlers in Hebron have
in past years forcibly prevented Muslim muezzins from
reaching the al-Ibrahimi Mosque/Tomb of the Patriarchs
to sound the call to prayer, and have harassed Muslim
worshippers in Hebron. Settler harassment of Palestinian
Muslims in Hebron was a regular occurrence in this reporting
period. The Government of Israel did not effectively
respond to settler-initiated blocking of religious sites.
While there are no specific restrictions
placed on Palestinians making the Hajj, all Palestinians
faced closures and long waits at Israeli border crossings,
which often impeded travel for religious purposes. Palestinians
generally are not allowed to use Ben-Gurion airport
to travel to Egypt or Jordan, and there are no direct
air links from Israel to Saudi Arabia (Israel and Saudi
Arabia do not have diplomatic relations). If residents
of the occupied territories obtain a Saudi Hajj visa,
they must travel by ground to Amman (for West Bankers)
or Egypt (for Gazans) and then by ground, sea, or air
to Jeddah.
Abuses of Religious Freedom
During the reporting period, some Christian
groups report that the Government of Israel failed to
grant new visas to or renew existing visas for 38 Christian
clergy ministering in East Jerusalem and the West Bank.
While religious leaders say that there is still a problem
with clergy visas, there has been significant improvement
in this area in the past year. Catholic and Orthodox
priests and nuns and other religious workers oftenfrom
Syria and Lebanon faced long delays, and sometimes denied
applications, entirely without explanation; however,
the Israeli Government claimed that delays were due
to security processing for visas and extensions.
In July 2003, during construction
of the separation barrier in the West Bank town of Abu
Dis, Israeli authorities damaged the ruins of a sixth-century
Byzantine monastery. Officials of the Israel Antiquities
Authority publicly accused the Defense Ministry of ignoring
repeated warnings about the archaeological value of
the site, and they charged that excavations for the
barrier had damaged one-third of the Byzantine remains.
At the end of the reporting period, neither the Defense
Ministry nor the Antiquities Authority had repaired
the site.
On June 13 2003, the day that Muslims
celebrated the Birth of the Prophet Muhammed, IDF personnel
closed the al-Ibrahimi Mosque/Tomb of the Patriarchs
in Hebron in violation of the Hebron Protocol, which
states that the mosque should be available to Muslim
worshipers on Muslim holidays. On June 24, 2003 (and
in subsequent orders still in effect in 2005), Israeli
officers issued a new order preventing the muezzin at
the al-Ibrahimi Mosque/Tomb of the Patriarchs in Hebron
from sounding the call to prayer when Jews were praying
in their portion of the shrine.
The Government of Israel generally
has not compensated churches for damage incurred during
past military operations. Sites damaged in 2002 for
which no compensation was paid include St. Mary's Convent,
the chapel at Bethlehem University, the Lutheran Church
and orphanage in Beit Jala, the Latin Convent in Beit
Sahour, the Bethlehem Bible College, a Syrian Orthodox
Church, the Russian Orthodox Pilgrim's House, and the
Omar Ibn al-Khattab Mosque. Both the ninth century al-Khader
Mosque in Nablus, reputed to be the oldest mosque in
the occupied territories, and the church of Mar Mitri,
the oldest Christian church in Nablus, were destroyed.
There were no reports of major damage to religious sites
in the occupied territories during this reporting period.
At the end of this reporting period, there had been
no compensation paid for destroyed holy sites.
There were no reports of major damage
to Christian churches during this reporting period.
In previous years, there were credible reports that
the Israeli military caused significant damage to church
property. In January 2003, the IDF fired a missile that
penetrated the roof of St. Philip's Episcopal Church
in the Gaza Strip and exploded inside. The explosion
created a 1.5-meter crater near the altar and shattered
all the stained glass windows and chandeliers. Church
officials filed a claim with the IDF for compensation,
but never received a response. At the end of the reporting
period, the Church was not repaired and remained unusable.
The IDF acknowledged the incident, claiming it was an
accident that occurred while fighting militants. The
IDF generally does not compensate religious groups for
damage that allegedly occurred during combat operations.
In previous years, the PA failed to
halt several cases of seizures of Christian-owned land
in the Bethlehem area by criminal gangs. In many cases,
criminal gangs reportedly used forged land documents
to assert ownership of lands belonging to Christians.
Police failed to investigate most of these cases. In
two cases, police arrested and then released the suspects
on bail and allowed them to continue occupying the land
in question. Local religious and political leaders confirmed
that no such attempts to seize Muslim-owned land took
place.
There were credible reports in previous
years that PA security forces and judicial officials
colluded with members of these gangs to seize land from
Christians. In one reported case, a PA judge openly
told a Palestinian Christian landowner that he and his
partners in the PA intelligence services required a
substantial bribe to allow the landowner to remain on
his property. PA officials repeatedly promised Christian
leaders that they would take action in these cases,
but by the end of the reporting period, no action had
been taken.
There were no reports of religious
prisoners or detainees in the occupied territories.
Forced Religious Conversions
There were no reports of forced religious
conversion, including of minor U.S. citizens who had
been abducted or illegally removed from the United States,
or of the refusal to allow such citizens to be returned
to the United States.
Abuses by Terrorist Organizations
During the reporting period, the Palestinian
terrorist groups Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad
carried out several terrorist attacks against Israeli
civilians. In January 2004, 11 persons were killed and
over 50 injured in a suicide bombing aboard a bus in
Jerusalem. Hamas claimed responsibility for the attack.
While these attacks were usually carried out in the
name of Palestinian nationalism, some of the rhetoric
used by terrorist organizations such as Hamas also included
expressions of anti-Semitism.
A small number of Jewish settlers
affiliated with the extremist group Kach were arrested
for assaulting Palestinians and destroying Palestinian
property; however, most incidents of violence or property
destruction reportedly committed by settlers against
Palestinians did not result in arrests or convictions.
Section III. Societal Attitudes
There generally are amicable relations
between Christians and Muslims, although tensions exist.
Relations between Jews and non-Jews, as well as among
the different branches of Judaism, often are strained.
Tensions between Jews and non-Jews exist primarily as
a result of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, as well
as Israel's control of access to sites holy to Christians
and Muslims. Some non-Orthodox Jews in Jerusalem have
complained of discrimination and intolerance on the
part of some Orthodox Jews.
Societal attitudes continued to be
a barrier to conversions, especially for Muslims converting
to Christianity. In previous years, there were reports
that some Christian converts from Islam who publicized
their religious beliefs were harassed or ostracized
by their families or villages.
Muslim-Christian tension has been
minimal during this reporting period, and the few instances
of Muslim-Christian violence seem related to social
or inter-family conflicts rather than religious disputes.
Both Muslim and Christian Palestinians have accused
Israeli officials of attempting to foster animosity
among Palestinians by exaggerating reports of Muslim-Christian
tensions. Interfaith romance is a sensitive issue. Most
Christian and Muslim families in the occupied territories
encourage their children--especially their daughters--to
marry within their respective faiths. Couples who challenge
this societal norm have encountered considerable societal
and familial opposition. For example, there were reports
of some Christian women receiving death threats from
Christian family members and community leaders for marrying
Muslim men during the reporting period.
In October 2004, a yeshiva student
spat at the Armenian archbishop of Jerusalem while he
was engaged in a religious procession through the Old
City. The student was arrested and ordered to remain
away from the Old City for 75 days. He also made a formal
apology. The Holy See and the country's Chief Rabbinate
issued a joint condemnation of the assault at the end
of a meeting of Catholic and Jewish officials near Rome
shortly after the incident. There have been several
other spitting incidents in this reporting period, usually
involving Armenian clergy due to their proximity to
several Jewish Quarter yeshivas. The Mayor of Jerusalem,
the Chief Rabbinate and the heads of several yeshivas
have strongly criticized such behavior and punished
those involved. The Armenian Patriarchate is satisfied
with measures that the GOI, Municipality and yeshivas
have taken after these incidents, but believes that
more education on tolerance and respect for other religions
would be helpful.
A March 2005 dispute over the transfer
of property in Jerusalem's Old City owned by the Greek
Orthodox Church to Jewish investors ended with senior
Orthodox leaders calling for the removal of the Greek
Patriarch of Jerusalem, Irineos I. The sale enraged
Palestinians, who see the deals as a betrayal of Palestinian
parishioners by the mostly-Greek clergy, and fear that
such purchases will affect the Palestinian claims on
Jerusalem as the capitol of a future Palestinian state.
At the end of the period covered by this report, Patriarch
Irineos had been ousted from his position by the Orthodox
synod of bishops, but had not resigned, claiming that
proceedings against him were illegal. Jordan and the
Palestinian Authority have rescinded official recognition
of Irineos, but at the reporting period’s end
Israel still recognized him as Patriarch and kept a
contingent of Israeli police inside the Greek Orthodox
Monastery to protect him.
In general more-established Christian
denominations have not welcomed less-established evangelical
churches. During the reporting period, settlers from
the Hebron area and the southern West Bank severely
beat and threatened several international activists,
including three from the Christian Peacemaker Teams
that escort Palestinian children to school and that
protect Palestinian families from settler abuse. While
it is unclear whether the attackers’ motives stemmed
from religious extremism as opposed to ultra-nationalism,
the activists feel that local Israeli police did not
actively pursue the suspects and oppose the Christian
Peacemaker Teams’ presence in Palestinian villages.
The strong correlation between religion,
ethnicity, and politics in the occupied territories
at times imbues the Israeli-Palestinian conflict with
a religious dimension. The rhetoric of some Jewish and
Muslim religious leaders has been harsher since the
outbreak of the Intifada in October 2000.
In previous years, Muslims on the
Haram al-Sharif threw stones at Jewish worshippers on
the Western Wall plaza, leading to major police confrontations;
however, there have not been any recent incidents of
stone-throwing at the plaza.
The rhetoric of some Jewish and Muslim
religious leaders was harsh and at times constituted
an incitement to violence or hatred. For example, the
PA-controlled television station broadcast statements
by Palestinian political and spiritual leaders that
resembled traditional expressions of anti-Semitism,
such as Lebanese-produced programming that appeared
related to the anti-Semitic forgery "The Protocols
of the Elders of Zion." Some prominent Israeli
officials also made public anti-Muslim statements. Former
Israeli Deputy Defense Minister Ze'ev Boim asked in
2003, "What can explain bloody terrorism? What
is the essence of Islam in general and the Palestinians
in particular? Is it insufficient cultural development
or genetic defects?"
Israeli activists reported numerous
examples in which PA television shows invoked messages
that activists considered anti-Semitic or that attempted
to de-legitimize Jewish history in general. Israeli
settler radio stations often depicted Arabs as subhuman
and called for Palestinians to be expelled from the
West Bank. Right-wing, pro-settler organizations such
as Women in Green, and various Hebron-area publications,
have published several cartoons that demonize Palestinians.
Also, the sermons of some Muslim imams occasionally
included anti-Semiticmessages, such as a May 13 sermon
delivered by Shaykh Ibrahim Mudayris that ran on PA
television, in which he compared Jews (in the context
of land conflicts) to "a virus, like AIDS."
There were instances of Jewish-nationalist
extremists harassing Muslims. On several occasions,
a group of Jewish-nationalist extremists known as the
"Temple Mount Faithful" again attempted to
force their way inside the wall enclosing the Haram
al-Sharif/Temple Mount. In addition, the same group
periodically attempted to lay a cornerstone for the
building of a new Jewish temple that would replace the
Islamic Dome of the Rock shrine, an act that Muslims
considered an affront.
Section IV. U.S. Government Policy
The U.S. Consulate General in Jerusalem
discusses religious freedom issues with the Palestinians,
and the U.S. Embassy in Tel Aviv discusses religious
freedom issues with the Government of Israel as part
of its overall policy to promote human rights in the
occupied territories. The Consulate General also maintains
contacts with representatives of the Jerusalem Waqf--an
Islamic trust and charitable organization that owns
and manages large amounts of real estate, including
the Haram al-Sharif/Temple Mount in Jerusalem--as well
as with the various Christian churches and Jewish communities
in Jerusalem. Consulate General officers regularly urged
PA officials and religious leaders to end incitement
in the Palestinian media and in public statements.
The U.S. Government helped mitigate
the delay in granting visas to religious clerics in
the occupied territories. The U.S. Consulate General
in Jerusalem regularly works with the U.S. Embassy in
Tel Aviv to convey points of concern regarding visa
issuance, and U.S. officials regularly meet with religious
representatives to ensure that their legitimate grievances
are reported and addressed.
The Consulate General investigates
allegations of abuses of religious freedom. During the
reporting period, the Consulate investigated a range
of charges, including allegations of damage to places
of worship, allegations of incitement, and allegations
concerning access to holy sites. Consulate General officers
met with representatives of the Bethlehem Christian
community and traveled to the area to investigate charges
of mistreatment of Christians by the PA. The Consulate
General raised the issue of seizure of Christian-owned
land in discussions with PA officials.
Since 2002 the U.S. Government has
funded the Israel-Palestine Center for Research and
Information (IPCRI) to conduct an evaluation of new
Palestinian elementary and high school textbooks, and
to develop materials and conduct teacher training to
foster tolerance and remove anti-Semitic and prejudicial
content from Palestinian classrooms.
In October 2004, a representative
from the Office of International Religious Freedom visited
Jerusalem and met with Government officials, NGO representatives,
Muslim waqf officials, and Christian clergy and religious
workers, particularly those negatively impacted by construction
of the separation barrier.
In several cases, the Israeli Government
agreed to consider changes to the route of the barrier
in Jerusalem near several Christian institutions and
installed pedestrian gates in the barrier to facilitate
the passage of priests and other religious workers.
Three of these route changes were formalized by the
end of the reporting period.
Sources: U.S. State Department - Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor |